Taylor Swift opens up tour rehearsal for charity

NEW YORK (AP) - Some lucky Taylor Swift fans will get a chance to see her tour before it officially kicks off later this month _ all in the name of charity.

The 21-year-old country singer is selling tickets to the last dress rehearsal for her “Speak Now” tour, it was announced Friday. She is donating all the proceeds to those affected by last month’s deadly tornadoes in the South.

Some 13,000 tickets will be available for fans to purchase for the May 21 “Speak Now … Help Now!” benefit at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., where Swift has been rehearsing for the last five weeks.

“I was watching the coverage of the tornadoes backstage at rehearsals, and I wanted to do something for the families affected by the damage. I’ve never opened a rehearsal to the public before, but I felt that inviting my fans to the last rehearsal for the `Speak Now’ tour would be a great way to raise money,” she said.

“We will probably still be doing some fine-tuning to the show that night, since this will be a true rehearsal, but I feel like it is so important for me and my fans to help if we can.”

Earlier this year, Swift donated to relief efforts in Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

Tornadoes struck seven states in the South last week, killing 329 people and destroying entire communities.

According to Swift’s website, her “Speak Now” tour will open May 27 in Omaha, Neb. Other stops on the tour, scheduled to run through Nov. 22, include Los Angeles, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nashville, and New York City.